A stalled gay marriage bill in the
Illinois House of Representatives has the votes to clear the chamber,
supporters of the legislation say.

The bill, approved by the Senate on
Valentine's Day and a House panel in March, has the support of
Democratic Governor Pat Quinn, leaving only a vote in the House
standing in its way to becoming law. But with only days left in the
regular legislative session, backers have announced that they have
the votes and expect the vote will take place sometime next week.

“There's exactly one week left in the
legislative session,” Illinois State Rep. Greg Harris, the
measure's Democratic champion in the chamber, said in a statement.
“And let me make one thing clear: In the next seven days, we can –
and we will – secure the freedom to marry.”

Bernard Cherkasov, CEO of Equality
Illinois, told ChicagoPride.com that he was confident the bill would
pass.

“The votes are indeed there. And I
believe the bill is going to pass, but we've received no indication
yet on when the bill would be called,” he
said.

The decision to call the bill for a
vote belongs to Harris, who shepherded the state's civil unions law
through the chamber two years ago.

Passage in the House requires 60 votes.
Democrats have 71 members in the chamber and two Republicans have
pledged their support for the bill.

If the marriage law is approved,
Illinois would become the 13th state to legalize such
unions and the fourth this year.